Canon EOS 800D

The novice-friendly EOS 800D has the same impressive tech under the skin as the EOS 77D. Rod Lawton puts it to the test.

Canon is aiming for two distinctly different types of photographer with the EOS 800D (Rebel T7i) and EOS 77D. Both cameras use Canon’s latest 24-megapixel APS-C Dual Pixel CMOS AF sensor and offer the same continuous shooting rate and ISO range, but where the EOS 77D offers more hands-on control for serious enthusiasts, the 800D cuts back on the complication to appeal more to novices. Strictly speaking, then, the EOS 800D takes the place of the EOS 750D (Rebel T6i) as Canon’s best beginner DSLR.

At first glance it may not look very different to the 750D, since both cameras have 24-megapixel APS-C sensors. In practice, though, the 800D brings some substantial improvements. One of these is the sensor itself. This is the 24-megapixel Dual Pixel CMOS AF sensor used in the Canon EOS 80D, not the lower-spec Hybrid CMOS AF III sensor found in the 750D. This should deliver improved autofocus for Live View photography and movies – in fact, Canon claims a response time of just 0.03 sec, and further claims this is currently the fastest-focusing APS-C interchangeable lens camera using sensor-plane autofocus – though real world autofocus response will of course depend on the shooting conditions, and on the lens used.

The regular AF system gets a boost too, upgraded from the 19-point system used in the EOS 750D to the 45-point system of the EOS 80D. The 800D may be designed for beginners, but it packs some of Canon’s latest and best imaging technology, and this also includes the latest-generation DIGIC 7 processor, higher ISO range (up to ISO25,600 without expansion), 6fps continuous shooting and a decent buffer capacity of 27 raw files, or as many JPEGs as your memory card can hold.

There’s also a modest but useful boost to the video performance – the 800D doesn’t offer 4K video, but it can shoot Full HD at 60/50fps for half-speed slow motion at full video resolution.